Philippine mayor killed by suspected guerillas: police

MANILA--Suspected communist guerrillas disguised in paramilitary-style uniforms shot dead a Philippine mayor Monday as he presided over a flag-raising ceremony at a town hall, police said.

About 20 men took part in the brazen attack, shooting dead Mayor Carlito Pentecostes in the northern town of Gonzaga and then overpowering officers at the scene, said regional police director Chief Superintendent Miguel Laurel.

"It looks like the NPA. That is where the evidence is pointing. It was their usual modus operandi, disguising in camouflage uniforms," he told AFP.

The 4,000-strong communist New People's Army has been waging a 45-year-old insurgency in the hinterlands of the Southeast Asian archipelago that has claimed 30,000 lives, according to government estimates.

Laurel said the gunmen escaped in several vehicles, including a commandeered police patrol car.